Youth Group

The St. Mary’s Youth Group is a place where our teens can find a safe place to grow as a community, and grow in their faith. Loving leaders and teens meet weekly for Christ-centered discussions and games. In addition, from time to time we participate in some kind of community service, from feeding the hungry in San Francisco, to traveling internationally on our annual Youth Mission Trip. The Youth Group is incredibly loving and welcoming, and our participants stretch well beyond the St. Mary’s membership to include LOTS of friends. For more information, email Mike Stafford at mike@smvsf.org.

Youth Group Kickoff! Our new year of Youth Group will kick off on Sunday, September 10 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. All 6th-12th graders and their parents are invited to attend this extravaganza. The evening will be epic: games, food, great conversation… you don’t want to miss it. Contact Mike Stafford (mike@smvsf.org) with questions!

Are you interested in supporting our Youth Ministries? Come by the Youth Group table at the Ministries Fair to sign up for Youth Group dinners or Youth Ministry. Please contact Mike Stafford at mike@smvsf.org with any queries.

Youth Mission Trip
St. Mary’s Youth Group returned to San Francisco after their trip to Marvell, Arkansas. You can read about their trip on their blog.

Comment from Mack:

“I feel like I have changed more in the last 4 days than in the past 14 years of my life”. I have never met such motivated, energetic, and kind kids like the ones at Marvell. They each have so much to give to this world, and have strong heads on their shoulders. These kids don’t care about the situation they are in, but rather see how bright their future is, and that is truly inspirational. As we head back to the city, I know that I return a very different person, and can only hope that one day I’ll have the opportunity to go back to Marvell one day.

St. Mary Magdalene Scholarship Fund – Beginning in 2017, St. Mary’s is offering scholarships to young women of the parish. Applications for this year have closed. Check back for information on next year’s application. Winners for 2017 are: Ainsley Ball, Helen Carey, Frannie Sutton, Ginny Woodworth, Eva Smith, Isabel Paxton and Sophie Reynolds.

2016 Youth Mission Trip

Youth who traveled to Kenya on the Mission Trip last summer preached at the three services on September 18.

Check our facebook page for some of the wonderful photos taken on this trip.

Nambale Magnet SchoolNMS is a K-8 school in Western Kenya, built to provide a home and excellent education for children orphaned by AIDS, and others in Western Kenya. NMS was founded by Rev. Evalyn Wakhusama, a native of Kenya and graduate of Yale Divinity School, who serves as a priest in the Diocese of Kenya and serves as president of the school. The school actively selects the poorest of the poor – children who are getting barely enough food, shelter, and security to live – and providing them the support and resources to thrive along with their classmates. The school opened in January 2009 with 32 children in grades K-1, and has grown to serve more than 300 students, through the 8th grade. There is a staff of 45, including teachers, teachers’ aides, kitchen staff, a social worker, agricultural workers, and security personnel. Money for the school is raised through donations, some tuition, and through some of their farming activities.

Adventure Night is something that everyone looks forward to! It is usually the first Sunday of the month, and is open to 6th-12th graders. Some Adventure Nights are at the Church, while others are off campus, and sometimes the plan is a complete surprise! Previous adventures have included:

Beach Bonfire

Games night

Movie night

North Beach Treasure Hunt

White Elephant Gift Exchange

Bowling

Ghirardelli Square

Pier 39

House of Air

Superbowl Parties

…and many more!

Middle School Youth Group

MSYG strives to create strong bonds between our middle schoolers, while having an incredibly fun time. MSYG is open to all 7th-9th graders, and typically involves dinner, games, and a great discussion. Past discussion topics have included Life as a Middle School student, food, thanksgiving, the fundamentals of Christianity (and other religions), body image, and our stewardship of the environment.

High School Youth Group

HSYG understands the various stresses that high schoolers face, and seeks to build a fun, loving, and supportive community of high schoolers and adults to help them on their journey. HSYG is open to 9th-12th graders; we eat dinner together, play games, and have Christ-centered discussion about topics that the students choose. Past discussion topics have included relationships, other religions, stress, living as a teen Christian in the Bay Area, music, prayer, and social media.

Youth Mission Trip to KenyaMike Stafford, Director of Youth Programs

Seven teens and two adults traveled all the way from St. Mary’s to Western Kenya for our annual Youth Mission Trip. The destination was the Nambale Magnet School (NMS), a Pre-K through 8th grade school in the western part of the country. The two-week trip exemplified why Youth Mission Trips are important: the teens bonded as a team, accomplished meaningful service, and most importantly broadened their understanding of who their neighbors are, and how to love and serve them in the name of Christ. As Missioner Stella Smith says, “Our trip to Africa really changed my life. You don’t really understand how the people there are living until you live with them. I will be forever grateful for getting to experience it, and it is something I will never forget.”

Founded by the Rev. Evalyn Wakhusama in 2002, the Nambale Magnet School has a specific mission: to serve some of the poorest of the poor. With financial support from American and Kenyan donors, a third of the 300 students at the school are on full scholarship and would not otherwise have access to education.

Mike and Riley watching a football match from the comfort of the playground.

Travel to Nambale was arduous. After a 24-hour journey, we got to Nairobi, Kenya, where we spent the night in a hotel. The next morning we flew across the country to Kisumu, where two SUVs took two hours to get us to the school. Immediately upon our arrival we were greeted with love and enthusiasm. Evalyn met us, along with Gama Ondre, the Head Teacher. We toured the school grounds and farm, and then got to meet the kids. Dozens of little kids swarmed us, played with us, taught us Kiswahili (the local language), braided our hair, and just connected with us. The mutual joy of our presence at the school was palpable.

We were lucky to stay for most of the trip at the school’s newly-constructed guest house; called “Karibu House” (Karibu means welcome in Kiswahili). Our main service to the school was painting the exterior of buildings. We worked to finish the guest house, the dining hall, and the two dormitories. Every morning was dedicated to painting, led by Simon, also known as “Dr. Marangi” (the Paint Doctor). The intense heat made the painting challenging from time to time, but we persevered. The Paint Doctor brought us gifts as well as paint, including handmade bracelets, a jackfruit, and sugar cane. It was lovely to see a lasting and meaningful transformation come to the school buildings.

Ginny Woodworth and Maddie Vestal getting their hair braided.

After cleaning up the paint, we would have a late lunch and then spend time with the NMS students after their classes. Sometimes we would join a football game, or simply talk, or sing with the kids. Tea was served every afternoon, and not long after that came dinner, followed by evening devotionals with the students. That was an incredibly beautiful event to witness; the abundant faith and hope expressed in song and prayer moved our hearts significantly. Our group would return to the guest house for our own evening reflection and some time to unwind by playing cards.

Duncan Walsh getting to know NMS students.

One very special day was called Sports Day. The entire student body was divided into four teams that would compete throughout the day. The students’ parents and guardians were invited to attend and participate, as were many other members of the Nambale community. Our group led the students in their warm-up, and then joined each team in its grand entrance to the field of play. There were races, relays, and incessant cheering, all to the music of a local band. The NMS girls and boys each played a football match against a neighboring school, and there was a Staff-Parent football match, during which Mike scored two goals (much to the surprise of everybody). The day ended with trophies to the winning team (“Simba,” meaning lion). Then most of the students headed home for a three-day break.

During that break, the 7th and 8th graders remained to continue their studies. Our group worshiped with them on Sunday morning. Later, we wandered into the town of Nambale to experience an East African Market Day. When the students returned from their break, we were back to our daily routine.

Finally, after ten days of service and forging relationships, it was time to leave the Nambale Magnet School and head out on safari. The students sang a beautiful blessing to our group, and we experienced a poignant mixture of joy and sadness as we took leave of the school.

A long drive by the safari company took us south to the Masai Mara National Park, where we saw some of the most striking beauty of God’s creation. Zebras, elephants, giraffes, lions, cheetahs, wildebeest, gazelles, buffalos, hippos and other wild creatures all moved through their natural habitat.

The teens were unanimous in their agreement that as incredible as the safari was, the more meaningful experience was at the school. As missioner Joey Moore says, “Kenya was a stunning experience for me. Interacting with the people and seeing their day-to-day lives was very captivating. It gave me a new outlook on poverty and the education system in a developing country.”

Overall, the trip was among the most moving and transformative of St. Mary’s Youth Mission trips. “To see so many children so grateful for all that God has given them and so happy to live and love the Lord, gave me the opportunity to reexamine my life and my relationship with God,” says Ginny Woodworth. “I’m so thankful to have been able to witness such unbounded joy; like the children singing their hearts out and studying relentlessly every night even without power. I am forever changed by this spectacular and remarkable experience.”

Virginia Norris and Stella Smith painting Karibu House.

We all long to return to the school as soon as possible. Having had such an unusually transformative experience this year, our teens would love to work with St. Mary’s to continue the relationship with NMS, allowing us to return in the future. It would be impractical to make an annual Youth Group trip to Kenya, but we are committed to return as soon as possible. In addition, the youth felt that this experience should not be limited to teens, but should be expanded to include St. Mary’s adult parishioners. A group at the parish is forming to explore this continued relationship; anyone interested in exploring ways to further this mission should contact Mike Stafford at mike@smvsf.org.

Youth Mission Trippers on safari.

Through the generosity of the parish, we were able to send seven teens and two adults halfway around the world to serve and experience Christ at the Nambale Magnet School. The church was also able

to donate over $8900 to the school for its continued mission to serve the children of western Kenya. As the kids at NMS regularly and joyfully shouted, “God is good all the time! All the time God is good, and that is nature; wow! God is great!”